Features

In this article we will show some distinguishing features, that will make your Guru Maps experience easier and more complete.

Download Maps

Download maps and navigation data

Free vector maps by country are available for download within the Guru Maps in the app settings menu called Download Maps.

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Tap the country name to expand the list of available options:

• Download a map,
• Download a navigation data (if you whant to use navigation while being offline).

To pause a download, tap the cell. Tap it again to resume a download.

To remove the map or navigation data, swipe your finger across the cell from right to left, then tap the Delete button, or use the Edit button at the top right corner.

Update maps and navigation data

As OpenStreetMap data is constantly updated by thousands of volunteers around the world, so map updates are available from time to time within the app. In the Guru Maps app all vector map updates are free and distributed automatically. If there is an update for a previously downloaded map, you will see the Update button beside the map.

To update all your downloaded maps, tap the Update All button.

Share maps and navigation data

It's possible to use AirDrop to share downloaded vector maps and offline navigation data between iOS devices that are nearby when you are without an Internet connection.

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Search

Guru allows to search within the downloaded vector maps by name, by categories, by address and by GPS coordinates.

All types of searches are completely offline and require only the vector maps to be downloaded. The object will be found in Guru Maps if it exists on OpenStreetMap.org.

Note: to search for your data such as bookmarks and GPS tracks, open the My Collections.

Start search

To open the search screen, tap the magnifying-glass icon. Type or paste the keyword you want to find in the search field, then tap Find on the keyboard.

You can also use your voice to perform a search instead of typing when you're connected to the Internet. Just tap the search field, and then tap the microphone icon next to the spacebar on the iOS keyboard to start dictating. When you’re finished, tap Done and then wait for your words to be processed. It can take a few seconds for text to appear.

Search suggestions

Quick search mechanism designed to make it faster to complete your searches. Just begin typing, and you’ll see the suggested results appear:

If nothing of these quick suggestions matches your query, then tap Find on the keyboard to get the full list of results.

History

Below the category icons you’ll see a list of search queries with a clock icon on the left. We show these to help you quickly get back to a previous search you may have conducted.

Results on the map

Search results will appear on the map in addition to the scrollable list below. Map preview is interactive and search results are refreshed on the fly as you move and scale the map.

Tap any result on the map or in the list to get more information in details view below. Tap it again on the map to come back to all search results list again.

After you find a place, you can view it on the map, get directions to this place or save as bookmarks in your collections:

Search by name

It is not necessary to type punctuation or worry about capital letters, but the search will not recognize a misspelling.

Search by category

You can also search for a category, like food or shops:

At the top of a search results for selected category, you can see ways to narrow down your results:

You can edit your search criteria to find exactly what you want. Just tap the search field and start typing to refine your search:

Search by address

Start typing the street name, and Guru starts offering matching entries, choose one you want:

Then Guru displays a list of all house numbers on the street:

Enter house numbers to narrow the selection:

Search by coordinates

If you know the exact coordinates of a location, you can simply enter them into the search field to locate it on the map:

You may enter the coordinates in any of the supported coordinate formats. To avoid confusion while inputting coordinates from the keyboard it is possible to use spaces instead of (‘) Right Single Quotation Mark, (”) Right Double Quotation Mark or (°) Degree Sign.

Read also: Units Format.

Navigation

Guru Maps gives you the ability to find the best multi-stop route and get step by step directions for your drive or walk.

Note: to build a route offline you need to download navigation data first. Read also: Download maps and navigation data.

Create route

In order to start navigation, you can use one of the following methods:

• click on the routing button

• click and hold the map at the desired point until the pop-up appears and then press the route-building button

• swipe right on a bookmark in My Collections list, then tap

• click on the POI on the map and press the routing button

A map will appear with your driving route highlighted in blue with some route information at the bottom: distance to go, time to go, arrival time:

Route will be shown for drive mode by default, but you may choose the appropriate mode for your needs (driving, cycling, walking, in a straight line):

If you choose cycle or pedestrian mode, a gradient will appear which shows an altitude during the route (gradient will appear only if there is an internet connection):

Note: the point on the track is related to the speed and altitude values.

Add waypoints

Waypoints are via locations, that you want to go through along your route before you reach your destination. There are two ways to add waypoints to a route:

• by tapping and holding on a location directly on the map:
• by tapping "+ Add waypoint" from the list and searching for the waypoint:

The route will be adjusted automatically after adding any waypoint. Once the route is calculated, you can drag and drop the waypoints on the map or reorder directly from the list to recalculate the route dynamically.

To remove the waypoint, tap it on the map:

The service error message "Path distance exceeds the max distance limit" will appear when the route is greater than the service limits:

Cycling

• Online: 50 points or 400km • Offline: 50 points or 200km

Driving

• Online: 20 points or 5000km • Offline: 20 points or 2000km

Walking

• Online: 50 points or 100km • Offline: 50 points or 100km

Additional options

Tap the 3-dots button in the top right corner of route planner screen and select the available options:

• Save Route to save your route for later use,

• Optimize Route to get a route with shortest travel time, appears if there are two waypoints added,

• Open Navigation Settings to set the navigation options not leaving the route set mode. After adjusting the settings, your route will be recalculated to match your needs.

Read also: Navigation Settings.

Note: created route does not take in account the real-time or historical traffic data.

Navigation mode

To begin navigation, tap icon.

After the route is started, in navigation mode you can always:

• stop your route by tapping icon, then Stop movement option from menu.

• edit your route by tapping icon, then Edit route option from menu.

• skip the next waypoint on your route and continue to the next one, or to your destination by tapping icon:

If you miss a turn or intentionally go the wrong way from the planned route, the app will automatically recalculate the route.

Voice instructions

When you’re navigating to a place, you can hear navigation directions. You can stop receiving directions at any time while in navigation mode by tapping the sound icon .

A long tap on the sound icon allows choosing one of the supported languages, which will be used for voice instructions. You can also change the language selection to hear the navigation instructions in the app Settings > Navigation. Read also: Navigation Settings.

Tip: If you pair your iOS device with your Bluetooth capable device so you can stream voice instructions from the Guru app to your Helmet device or automobile speaker system. How it works: when listening to music the voice instructions would lower the music volume automatically and give directions and then would automatically go back to the normal volume of the music once voice instructions finished.

Read also: How to pair your iOS device with your Bluetooth accessories.

Importing KML/KMZ/GPX Files

You can easily import KML/KMZ/GPX files to view them on the map in several ways using email, URL or Files app.

Import from Email

If you have a KML/KMZ/GPX file that someone shared with you via email, you can view it in the Guru app:

1. Open the message containing the KML/KMZ/GPX file as an attachment.
2. Tap and hold the attached KML/KMZ/GPX file name until a menu comes up.
3. Choose the Copy to Guru Maps option to initiate the file import process.

Import from iCloud Drive

If you store your KML/KMZ/GPX in iCloud Drive, you could import it using Files app:

1. Open the file you want to import.
2. Tap the button.
3. Select Copy to Guru Maps to initiate the import process.

Import from URL

In case you have a web link to the KML/KMZ/GPX file:

1. Tap the link to open it in your browser.
2. Tap the Open in Guru Maps, to initiate the import process.

Note: If you have another app used by default to open this file format, select More..., then select Copy to Guru Maps option to initiate the import process.

Import from Dropbox app

If you store your KML/KMZ/GPX files in Dropbox:

1. Open the file you want to import.
2. Tap the ... button.
3. Select Export option from dropdown.
4. Tap on Open in.. button.
5. Select Copy to Guru Maps to initiate the import process.

There is also an option to import multiple folders from a single KML file separately or merge them into one collection available:

• Keep several collections,
• Save to one collection.

Exporting Geodata

Guru allows you to export any of you routing geodata (bookmarks, tracks or whole collections) to KML/GPX files in several ways.

Save as KML/GPX file

When you need to save your Guru Maps geodata or to transfer it to another app installed on your device, tap the icon on details screen:

Select the file format that you want to export data to, then select the app you want to copy your data:

Share URL

Create a shared link if you want anyone to be able to click a link to preview of your geodata on the map in the browser. They will also have the option to download a copy of it as KML/GPX file:

1. Tap the icon on details screen.
2. Select the method (AirDrop, email, text message or social networks) you want to share your link through.

Export using iTunes File Sharing

The Guru supports File Sharing option that allows you to copy exported files from Guru to your computer:

1. Tap the icon on details screen.
2. Tap Save as KML or Save as GPX button.
3. Then tap Save to the App shared folder option.

Exported file will appear in the Guru File Sharing section in iTunes.

Read also: About File Sharing on iOS.

Bookmarks

The Bookmarks feature is a great way to keep your favorite places at your fingertips. Save places you want to go to or mark an interesting POI on the go that you could come back to later.

Create new bookmark

Tap and hold on the map until the pop-up appears, then tap the Bookmark icon (first in a row):

If you have coordinates in your clipboard Guru can import them for you:

Bookmark details

To view bookmark details tap the bookmark icon on the map, then drag the bottom drawer upward to its full height, or open it from the My Collections list.

To move the bookmark, tap the bookmark icon and hold for a second, then drag the bookmark to where you want and drop it.

To edit bookmark name and description, tap the name or description field and use the onscreen keyboard to type a new text.

To change the bookmark icon, tap the Category field and select the icon you want from the list with available icons that will open, then tap Back.

To move a bookmark to another collection, tap the field with the collection name and select the new name from the list of available collections, then tap Back.

To copy coordinates, tap the icon next to coordinates. It will bring up the pop-up with available options to copy bookmark coordinates:

• Copy as text — coordinates will be copied to the clipboard in the format as you see it (+9.570674, +100.060448).
• Copy as URL — coordinates will be copied as URL, containing geolocation information (latitude, longitude, zoom level) of a selected bookmark to share it by Email or SMS (guru://9.570674,100.060446). Tap this URL from the email or message on your device to view the location on the map within the installed Guru app.

To edit coordinates, tap the coordinates to start edit (X ,Y) GPS coordinates.

To show the direction to the bookmark, tap the Bearing Line switch option to ON. The bearing line to only one bookmark can be displayed on the map at any given moment.

To view the bookmark on the map tap the icon. It will open the map centered on the selected bookmark.

To hide the bookmark from the map, scroll down the bookmark details screen and tap the icon. To reveal it again, tap the icon.

To create a route to this bookmark, tap icon.

To export a bookmark, tap the icon at the bottom of the bookmark details screen and choose the method to save your data.

Read also: Exporting Geodata.

To delete a bookmark, tap the icon at the bottom of the bookmark details screen.

Tip: The best way to export several bookmarks at once is to save them in one collection and export the whole collection.

GPS Tracks

Guru Maps lets you record your movements, view detailed statistics and export recorded GPS tracks in most common formats.

Record GPS Track

To record GPS Track, tap the REC button on the map. It will become red. If you recorded track before, you will be prompted to continue the last track recording, or to start a new one. Tap the REC button again and the recording stops.

— track is not recording — track is recording now

Tip: while a GPS track is being recorded, a numbered badge appears over the upper-right corner of an App icon on the Home screen:

Note: To record GPS tracks in the background, make sure you have allowed the background activity for Guru app in Settings > General > Background App Refresh.

View GPS track details

To view track details, tap the track name on the map or open it from the My Collections list.

To edit track name and description, tap the name or description field and use the onscreen keyboard to type a new text.

To move a track to another collection, tap the field with the collection name and select the new name from the list of available collections, then tap Back.

To change the track style, tap the desired color or set the track color based on speed or altitude.

To view the track on the map, tap the icon to open the map centered on the selected GPS track.

To hide the track from the map, scroll down the track details screen and tap the icon. To reveal it again, tap the icon.

To export a track, tap the icon at the bottom of the track details screen and choose the way to save your data.

Read also: Exporting Geodata.

To delete a track, tap the icon at the bottom of the track details screen.

Tip: The best way to export several tracks at once is to save them in one collection and export the whole collection.

GPS Filtering

To filter GPS data and delete inaccurate points in the already recorded track, tap GPS Filtering:

Note: filters settings influence the appearance of track on a map and size of track while exporting, but they do not affect the number of recorded points.

Accuracy Threshold

Filter by the minimum accuracy of the received points. Points that are on the outside of the filter value will not be displayed in the track.

Example: You are recording your GPS track while walking around your neighborhood and you have entered a supermarket. Tall walls, roofs and other obstructions can block the signal from GPS satellites and the device cannot determine your location accurately enough. You may enable the accuracy filter to hide GPS points if they are too far from your location. If the received signal has lower than the required accuracy, that points will not be displayed in the track.

Distance Threshold

Filter by the minimum distance between points of a recorded track. Points that are closer than the distance specified in the filter will not be displayed in the track.

Example: You are recording your GPS track while jogging, then you meet a friend and stop to talk to him. As the GPS sends location coordinates every second, too many points will be recorded on the same spot while you are talking and too many lines of a track will be drawn. You may enable the distance filter to hide GPS points if they are too close to each other and get rid of unnecessary lines.

Note: you can change gradient to show speed or altitude during the route by tapping button in the upper right corner. The point on the track is related to the speed and altitude values.

To set GPS filters for newly recorded and imported tracks, go to the app settings called Default Settings.

Collections

Collections are groups of bookmarks and GPS tracks, like folders on your desktop. Organising items into collections makes it easy to keep your travel itineraries separate from each other.

My Collections List

To open My Collections list, tap the icon on the map.

To create new collection, tap the button at the bottom of the My Collections list. Enter details, then tap Done.

To view a set of bookmarks and GPS tracks within the collection, tap the collection name in the list.

You can easily sort collections and its content by date created, distance and file name in the list:

• Recent — the most recently created items go first,
• Nearest — collections, containing locations that are the closest to your current location, are listed at the top,
• A-Z — items are sorted in alphabetical order.

To search in the list, tap the search field to reveal the onscreen keyboard and start typing. The list will dynamically display collections containing items that match your search criteria as you type.

To delete from the list, swipe left your finger horizontally across the collection, bookmark or track name you want to delete in My Collections list, then tap the Delete icon.

To show/hide item, tap the icon to hide the track or bookmark from the map. Tap the icon to reveal it again. The text font color changes from black to gray: black – for visible, gray – for hidden items:

Tap and hold any element or tap the Edit button to delete selected elements or move them to another collection in bulk.

- select all, — move to, — delete.

Tap the 3-dots button icon for displaying more options:

• Find the shortest route - the shortest route for selected bookmarks will be calculated (route starts and ends at your current location).
• Share All - send selected bookmarks and tracks as KML or GPX file via Messages, Mail or any third-party app installed on your device.

Collections Details

To view collection details, tap the icon next to the name in the My Collections list.

To edit collection name and description, tap the name or description field and use the onscreen keyboard to type a new text.

To set a collection as default, tap the Default Collection switch to ON to save newly added bookmarks and GPS tracks to this collection.

To select a parent collection in which this current collection is cataloged, tap My Collections cell.

To view collection on the map, tap the icon to open the map centered on the selected collection.

To show & hide collection from map, scroll down the collection details screen and tap the icon. To reveal it tap the icon.

Another way to show or hide the collection from the map is tapping the cell with the number of bookmarks and tracks currently displayed on the map:

To export a collection, tap the icon at the bottom of the collection details screen, choose the way to share your data.

Read also: Exporting Geodata.

Siri Shortcuts

A shortcut is a quick way to get one or more tasks done with Guru Maps. For example, Siri can help you:

• start/stop track recording,
• create bookmark,
• start navigation,
• perform a search,
• find nearest.

Add shortcuts to Siri

Here's how to set up custom shortcuts on your iOS device for Guru Maps commands by asking Siri:

1. Open the Shortcuts app and tap the My Shortcuts tab.
2. Tap Create Shortcut or tap + in the upper-right corner.
3. Tap + Add action:
4. Select Guru Maps from the list of apps.
5. Select action to use in your shortcut from the list.
6. Tap Next and give your shortcut a name.

When you create a Shortcut, Siri automatically recognizes it by the name you give it. So if you call a Shortcut ‘create a bookmark’, to run it just say:

To customize the shortcut, tap in the upper-right corner of the shortcut to open the shortcuts editor.

You can find more information about the Shortcuts app, including comprehensive steps for creating and using them, in the Shortcuts User Guide.

Example 1 - bookmark your current location

• Open the Shortcuts app and tap the My Shortcuts tab.
• Tap Create Shortcut or tap + in the upper-right corner.
• Tap + Add action:

• Select Location:

• Select Get Current Location:

• Select Guru Maps from the list of apps, then select Create bookmark:

• Tap and hold Location until the action sheet appears, then tap Select Magic Variable:

• Tap on Current Location below Get Current Location.

• Tap Next and give your shortcut a name.

Just say "Hey Siri, create a bookmark" to run this shortcut.

Note: We suggest you to use location from Get Current Location command, because it spends 1-5 seconds to receive precise location.